encyclopediafandomcom-20200222-history
The Unforgettable Fire (song)
"The Unforgettable Fire" is a song by rock band U2. The fourth song on their 1984 album The Unforgettable Fire, it was released as the album's second single in April 1985. The band cite an art exhibition by victims of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki that was held at The Peace Museum in Chicago as inspiration for the song. It became the band's third Top 10 hit in the United Kingdom, reaching #6 on the UK Singles Chart and #8 on the Dutch singles chart, but it was yet to break them into the United States. The song, like many tracks from The Unforgettable Fire, is an atmospheric composition, with ambient use of guitar and a string arrangement by Irish jazz musician Noel Kelehan. History Lighting and video effects for the performance of "The Unforgettable Fire" on the U2 360° Tour. "The Unforgettable Fire" was first played live at the fourth show of the Unforgettable Fire Tour on 2 September 1984 in the New Zealand city of Auckland.1 It was subsequently played at almost all Unforgettable Fire Tour shows. It was played at the majority of The Joshua Tree Tour shows and the song appeared regularly during 1989's Lovetown Tour, during which its last performance for nearly 20 years was on 6 January 1990. The song returned to the group's concert repertoire on the opening night of the 2009 U2 360° Tour. Track listings A shaped picture disc was issued with the IS220 release. The 12" Canadian release contained a false start at the beginning of "Love Comes Tumbling." "A Sort of Homecoming" and "Love Comes Tumbling" on the 12" Australian release were different versions from any other release. 7": Island / IS220 (UK release) No. Title Length 1. "The Unforgettable Fire" 4:56 2. "A Sort of Homecoming" (Live at Wembley Arena, Wembley, London, England, 15 November 1984) 4:06 7": Island / K-9561 (Australian and New Zealand releases) No. Title Length 1. "The Unforgettable Fire" 4:56 2. "MLK" 2:32 2x7": Island / ISD220 and CBS / DA 6185 (UK and Ireland releases) No. Title Length 1. "The Unforgettable Fire" 4:56 2. "A Sort of Homecoming" (Live at Wembley Arena, Wembley, London, England, 15 November 1984) 4:06 3. "Love Comes Tumbling" 4:45 4. "The Three Sunrises" 3:52 5. "Sixty Seconds in Kingdom Come" 3:15 12": Island / 12IS220, Island / 664 974, and Island / ISMC-1026 (UK, German CD, and Canadian releases) No. Title Length 1. "The Three Sunrises" 3:52 2. "The Unforgettable Fire" 4:56 3. "A Sort of Homecoming" (Live at Wembley Arena, Wembley, London, England, 15 November 1984) 4:06 4. "Love Comes Tumbling" 4:45 5. "Bass Trap" 5:17 12": Island / L18002 (Australian release) No. Title Length 1. "The Three Sunrises" 3:52 2. "The Unforgettable Fire" 4:56 3. "A Sort of Homecoming" (Live at Wembley Arena, Wembley, London, England, 15 November 1984) 4:06 4. "Love Comes Tumbling" (Alternate version) 4:37 5. "Bass Trap" 5:17 Chart positions Chart (1985) Peak position Dutch MegaCharts2 4 Irish Singles Chart3 1 New Zealand Singles Chart2 3 UK Singles Chart4 6 See also List of covers of U2 songs - The Unforgettable Fire References 1.Jump up ^ Parra, Pimm Jal de la U2 Live: A Concert Documentary, p.53, 1996, Harper Collins Publishers, ISBN 0-7322-6036-1 2.^ Jump up to: a b "U2 – The Unforgettable Fire". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 November 2009. 3.Jump up ^ "Irish Singles Chart". The Irish Charts. Retrieved 23 November 2009. Note: U2 must be searched manually. 4.Jump up ^ "EveryHit.com search results: U2". Everyhit.com. Retrieved 22 November 2009. Note: U2 must be searched manually. External links Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics Category:1985 singles Category:Island Records singles Category:U2 songs Category:Songs written by Bono Category:Songs written by the Edge Category:Songs written by Adam Clayton Category:Songs written by Larry Mullen, Jr. Category:Song recordings produced by Brian Eno Category:Song recordings produced by Daniel Lanois Category:Irish Singles Chart number-one singles Category:Music videos directed by Meiert Avis Category:1984 songs